If Cameron goes through with the cuts he details, then he is a Conservative I can respect. Most Conservatives in the US will not touch the military budget. Moreover while they continuously advocate further tax cuts, they are never bold enough to cut anything for fear of a popular revolt.
I think Cameron’s austerity if done quickly will be a net negative as the jobs and economic activity lost will further reduce tax revenue disproportionately. This needs to be a responsible process as even a bloated military is stimulative. If the citizens want less taxes and a balanced budget, they must be willing to have other businesses where those tax savings will be invested to create economic activity. This is usually not accomplished quickly so immediate slashing is not wise.
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DAVID STRINGER | 10/19/10 06:28 PM
LONDON — Britain will lose thousands of troops, reduce its ability to fight complex missions like the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and delay a program to upgrade its nuclear defenses, Prime Minister David Cameron announced Tuesday.
Outlining the first defense review since 1998 – intended both to sweep away strategies crafted before the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on the U.S. and to help clear the country’s crippling national debt – Cameron said 17,000 troops, a fleet of jets and an aging aircraft carrier would all be sacrificed.
Cameron’s government has hinted for months that the cuts would be severe – and sweeping. Communities around the country watched the announcement nervously, worried about jobs and the impact on local communities in a time of economic hardship.
The numbers were stark. Naval warships, 25,000 civilian staff and a host of bases will also be lost, while the country’s stockpile of nuclear warheads will be trimmed from 160 to 120.
Two new aircraft carriers will be built at a cost of 5 billion pounds ($8 billion) – but one will effectively by mothballed and another won’t have any British fighter jets to transport until 2019.
Instead, Britain will invest in its much admired special forces and develop expertise on cyber threats to secure the country’s status as a major global power, Cameron said.
"Britain has punched above its weight in the world, and we should have no less ambition for our country in the decades to come," Cameron told the House of Commons.
He said funding for the mission in Afghanistan, which does not come from the regular military budget, would not be trimmed, promising extra resources for troops there.
Military cutbacks come a day before Treasury chief George Osborne’s long-anticipated announcement of a government-wide program to drastically cut department budgets and welfare bills. The largest cuts to public spending since World War II are aimed at virtually eliminating Britain’s deficit, which stands at over 10 percent of gross domestic product.
Osborne’s announcement will provide details of Britain’s spending plans for its intelligence agencies, though Cameron confirmed there will be an extra 500 million pounds ($785 million) in funding to counter cyber threats.
Cameron said the overhaul wasn’t just aimed at cutting the military budget – saying he was breaking decisively with the strategy of predecessors Tony Blair and Gordon Brown.
British Armed Forces Cuts Announced: UK Addresses Deficit, Trims Defense Spending
